Emanuel served from the beginning of the Obama administration until late last year, when he returned home to Chicago to run for what he had described as his dream job. The job opened up when Mayor Richard Daley decided not to seek a seventh term after 22 years in office.

During the campaign, Emanuel promoted his top-level connections by often mentioning his frequent telephone chats with President Barack Obama. He said he and his wife, Amy Rule, are friends with Biden and his wife, Jill.

Emanuel said Biden has a "love for the city" and recognizes how important Chicago, the third-largest city in America, is for the country.

Biden's visit also says something about Emanuel, said Dick Simpson, a political scientist at the University of Illinois at Chicago and a former city alderman.

"It shows he has access," Simpson said.

While Biden is in Chicago for Emanuel's inauguration in a downtown park just across the street from Obama's new campaign headquarters, the president will be on a trip to Memphis, Tenn., to deliver a high school commencement address.